Appliance for catching flies.



No. 863,038. PATENTED AUG. 1 1907.

H. MOSS. v APPLIANCE FOR GAIGHING FL'IBS.

APPLI OATION FILED JAN. 2, 1907.

Wrrmzssss V 1 mvtlm dag HENRY MOSS, OF BURY, ENGLAND.

APPLIANCE FOR CATGI-IING FLIES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 13, 1907.

Application filed January 2,1907. Serial No. 350,371.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY Moss, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and a resident of Bury, in the county of Lancaster, England, commercial traveler, and whose post-office address is 19 Knowsley street, Bury, have invented a certain new and useful Improved Appliance for Catching Flies, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to appliances for catching flies and particularly to that class of appliance consisting of a strip of paper or the like smeared with a sticky preparation or substance which is coiled, and arranged in a small box or receptacle of suitable shapehaving a slit in the side through which the strip can easily be drawn out. At present these boxes are generally made of cardboard and are provided with a lid or cover fitting over same. In this class of box the material adjacent to the slit is liable to be bent inwards which has the effect of closing the slit through which the paper strip passes, causing the latter to be gripped therein with the result that it often tears on being pulled out. In addition to this defect the strip is also, in the act of being pulled out, often unevenly coated with the sticky material, some parts receiving an excess of material and others none at all.

My invention is designed to obviate the hereinbcforementioned objections and also to prevent any escape in bulk of the stickypreparation used from the box, a further object being to prevent the strip from being entirely pulled out of the box.

My invention consists essentially in placing inside the box a disk or the like preferably of the same shape as the box or in dishing the lid of the box the arrangement being adapted to maintain the sides of the box from falling in while in the case of the disk preventing the escape from the open end of the box of the sticky material; employing a pin, peg or the like in the box to which the strip is attached and around which it may be wound while a further feature consists in the application while warm of the sticky materal on the outer or top edge of the coil, afterwards allowing it to percolate into the spaces of the coil, which percolation may or may not be aided by the further application of gentle warmth.

My invention will be fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the appliance constructed and arranged in accordance with my invention, Fig. 2 plan of same with part of the lid removed while Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional elevations of the box showing modified constructions, I

In carrying out my invention a represents the box provided with a slit 1) while 0 represents the lid provided with aslit (Z corresponding to that in the box, the lid having its flange preferably extending towards the bottom of the outside of the box.

6 indicates a strip of paper as in the former construction hereinbefore referred to turned over at its outer end so as to form a loop (1 by which it may be hung in any suitable position after drawing out the strip partially from the box. This strip oi paper, or the like, is coiled, in the box or receptacle; but instead of occupying a separate compartment in the box or of being placed at one end of the box with the sticky material in the other compartment or at the other end of the box and with the strip coiled tight as in such former patent the coil is adapted to expand to the full size of the box so as to leave its coils more or less open, the outer end of the strip being passed through the slit. While in such a position the sticky material with which it is desired to smear the strip on both sides is placed in the box in a cold state, sufficient space g being left between the upper edge of the coil and the inside of the lid for this purpose. The material therefore is at liberty to flow or percolate between the coils of the strip, thereby smearing the latter on both sides and this percolation may be assisted by a gentle heat, if necessary. I then keep the coil and sticky material in the box by means of a loose disk h preferably of the same cross section as the box though it maybe of any other suitable shape so long as, however, such shape is capable of preventing the sides of the box a from being pressed inwards adjacent to the slit and thereby nipping the strip as already referred to. This disk entirely prevents the pressing inwards so that the strip a can be easily withdrawn through the slits b and d without rupturing the paper.

Instead of a plain disk such as h I may employ a disk having upwardly extending flanges h as in Fig. 3 so that when the lid 0 is placed on the box its inside comes in contact with the flange and presses the disk inwards against the edges of the coil or the sticky material in the space g.

In lieu of a disk provided with flanges, I may dish the lid of the box as indicated at c in Fig. 4, such portion 0, acting on the sticky material in the manner already referred to. I prefer, however, to employ a disk since this keeps the sticky material in position in the box and prevents it escaping should the lid 0 fall off or be removed, or the appliance be turned upside down. The disk may be of cardboard or any other suitable material. V

In the constructions of box prior to the date of this application a small pin or peg was employed round which the strip of paper was coiled but with this arrangement it very often happens that the strip in the process of being smeared by withdrawing it from the box could be entirely pulled out of the latter. To prevent this I employ either a loose pin or peg j as before or a pin, peg or tube, secured to the bottom of the box or I form a small loop is to pass over the peg so that on uncoiling the strip the latter cannot be pulled through the slits b and d as the end is considerably thicker than the Width of the slit.

The appliance described is utilized for catching flies by pulling the strip out from the box and exposing the sticky surfaces on which the fiies alight and become fast While the appliance is suspended.

What I claim as my invention and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A device of the character described consisting of a box and a lid, each provided with a slit; and a loosely coiled strip of material within the box and discharging through the slit, said box being; adapted to contain a sticky preparaiion, and means for preventing the compression of the box.

I 2. A device of the character described consisting of a box and a lid, each provided with a slit; said box being adapted to contain a sticky preparation, a strip of material loosely coiled within the box and a disk Within the box above the coil.

3. A device of the character described consisting of a box and a lid, each provided with a slit, said box being adapted to contain a sticky preparation, a strip of material loosely coiled in the box and a flanged disk within the box above the coil.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in 25 the presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY MOSS. Witnesses Amy E. EVINS, WILLIAM H. TAYLOR. 

